15 European gambling regulators unite to tackle loot box threat

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xMustard wrote:

i thought this was common knowledge.

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xMustard wrote:

so you're implying GGG does that with their loot boxes. that they lie about the chances (common uncommon rare) of getting the options or something.

i understand what you're saying as a hypothetical, but do you have any reason or evidence to throw out the implication that GGG is doing such a thing or is it just a hypothetical

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demon9675 wrote:

Loot boxes interfere with game design, incentivizing incredibly grindy gameplay in titles in which (unlike PoE) it's not at all appropriate or fun - all in order to push players towards buying their way through the grind.

Loot boxes obscure the real cost of content, usually blocking players from buying it directly for a fixed price and thus taking quite a bit of control away from consumers. We can no longer simply pay a known quantity in order to receive a known quantity - such a system is incredibly one-sided towards producers (which is why casinos make money).

Loot boxes prey on instincts that exist in everyone, even if they're not gambling addicts, to keep rolling the dice to get the shiny thing - especially if we have only one piece of a set left to go. But they're also commonly purchased by children.

Loot boxes are a greedy cash-grab by companies that don't want to be upfront about the cost of a complete game, instead selling half-finished games at a $60 shell-price. Splitting up products and selling them one part at a time, jacking the prices of the shiniest and most attractive parts, is never beneficial for consumers.

Loot boxes should NOT be illegal. But they should be heavily regulated and, perhaps more effectively, have a real social stigma associated with them among consumers. Luckily, this appears to be slowly happening as players get fed up with the concept of getting content piecemeal and not having any control over what they're buying.

Btw, to everyone out there who responds to dirty behavior by very large and powerful institutions by blaming the victims: whole populations have been effectively manipulated, controlled, tricked, and stolen from throughout all of human history. There will never be a time when everyone suddenly becomes so savvy and prescient that they can see through all forms of manipulation, and demanding this of people is incredibly silly. I'm of the opinion that the fact that it happens is itself wrong, and it's up to us to do what we can - as consumers or through representative gov't - to prevent it. Saying "it's your fault for getting tricked" is not a solution whatsoever.

Also no, this is not the most important problem facing our society. But a thousand issues are tackled at once by gov'ts and corporations and they're not mutually exclusive (mostly politics acts as a barrier to tackling the most important ones).

Anyway, that's my two cents.

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Orbitalx wrote:

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demon9675 wrote:

Loot boxes interfere with game design, incentivizing incredibly grindy gameplay in titles in which (unlike PoE) it's not at all appropriate or fun - all in order to push players towards buying their way through the grind.

Loot boxes obscure the real cost of content, usually blocking players from buying it directly for a fixed price and thus taking quite a bit of control away from consumers. We can no longer simply pay a known quantity in order to receive a known quantity - such a system is incredibly one-sided towards producers (which is why casinos make money).

Loot boxes prey on instincts that exist in everyone, even if they're not gambling addicts, to keep rolling the dice to get the shiny thing - especially if we have only one piece of a set left to go. But they're also commonly purchased by children.

Loot boxes are a greedy cash-grab by companies that don't want to be upfront about the cost of a complete game, instead selling half-finished games at a $60 shell-price. Splitting up products and selling them one part at a time, jacking the prices of the shiniest and most attractive parts, is never beneficial for consumers.

Loot boxes should NOT be illegal. But they should be heavily regulated and, perhaps more effectively, have a real social stigma associated with them among consumers. Luckily, this appears to be slowly happening as players get fed up with the concept of getting content piecemeal and not having any control over what they're buying.

Btw, to everyone out there who responds to dirty behavior by very large and powerful institutions by blaming the victims: whole populations have been effectively manipulated, controlled, tricked, and stolen from throughout all of human history. There will never be a time when everyone suddenly becomes so savvy and prescient that they can see through all forms of manipulation, and demanding this of people is incredibly silly. I'm of the opinion that the fact that it happens is itself wrong, and it's up to us to do what we can - as consumers or through representative gov't - to prevent it. Saying "it's your fault for getting tricked" is not a solution whatsoever.

Also no, this is not the most important problem facing our society. But a thousand issues are tackled at once by gov'ts and corporations and they're not mutually exclusive (mostly politics acts as a barrier to tackling the most important ones).

Anyway, that's my two cents.

I agree with everything you said and I couldn't have said it better myself.

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demon9675 wrote:

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Orbitalx wrote:

[...]

:) That's what I'm here for. Hero of the forums!

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BlackRoseImmortal wrote:

You know, bunch of rich fat bureaucrats addicted of power and money want to protect you from gambling addiction.